Chimaera
| image = Hydrolagus colliei.jpg | image_caption = Hydrolagus colliei | regnum = Animalia | phylum = Chordata | classis = Chondrichthyes | subclassis = Holocephali | ordo = Chimaeriformes | subdivision_ranks = Families | subdivision = Callorhinchidae Chimaeridae Rhinochimaeridae }} Chimaeras are cartilaginous fish in the order Chimaeriformes. They are related to the sharks and rays, and are sometimes called ghost sharks, ratfish (not to be confused with the rattails), or rabbitfishes. Description and habits Chimaeras live in temperate ocean floors at up to depth. They have elongated, soft bodies, with a bulky head and a single gill-opening. They grow up to in adult body length, although some also have a lengthy tail. In many species, the snout is modified into an elongated sensory organ. Like other members of the class Chondrichthyes, chimaeras have a skeleton constructed of cartilage. Their skin is smooth and lacks scales, and their color can range from black to brownish gray. For defense, most chimaeras have a venomous spine located in front of the dorsal fin. Chimaeras resemble sharks in some ways: they employ claspers for internal fertilization of females and they lay eggs with leathery cases. However, unlike sharks, male chimaeras also have retractable sexual appendages on the forehead and in front of the pelvic fins. They lay eggs in spindle-shaped leathery cases. They also differ from sharks in that their upper jaws are fused with their skulls and they have separate anal and urogenital openings. They lack the many sharp and replaceable teeth of sharks, having instead just three pairs of large permanent grinding tooth plates. Classification In some classifications the chimaeras are included (as subclass Holocephali) in the class Chondrichthyes of cartilaginous fishes; in other systems this distinction may be raised to the level of class. Chimaeras also have some characteristics of bony fishes. There are about forty species in six genera and three families: , Callorhinchus callorynchus]] Family Callorhinchidae * Genus Callorhinchus ** Elephant fish, Callorhinchus callorynchus (Linnaeus, 1758) ** Cape elephantfish, Callorhinchus capensis (Duméril, 1865) ** Australian ghost shark, Callorhinchus milii Bory de Saint-Vincent, 1823 * Genus †''Edaphodon''-prehistoric **†''Edaphodon agassizi'' Buckland, 1835 **†''Edaphodon antwerpiensis'' Leriche, 1926 **†''Edaphodon bucklandi'' Agassiz, 1843 **†''Edaphodon eyrensis Long, 1985 **†''Edaphodon kawai'' Consoli, 2006 **†''Edaphodon laqueatus'' Leidy, 1873 **†''Edaphodon leptognathus'' - (has not been formally classified) Agassiz **†''Edaphodon minor'' **†''Edaphodon mirabilis'' - (has not been formally classified) **†''Edaphodon mirificus'' Leidy, 1856 **†''Edaphodon sedgwicki'' **†''Edaphodon smocki'' Cope **†''Edaphodon stenobryus'' Cope **†''Edaphodon tripartitus'' Cope ]] Family Chimaeridae * Genus ''Chimaera ** Chimaera argiloba ** Chimaera cubana Howell Rivero, 1936 ** Chimaera fulva Southern Chimaera ** Chimaera jordani Jordan's ChimaeraTanaka, 1905 ** Carpenter's chimaera, Chimaera lignaria Didier, 2002 ** Chimaera macrospina Longspine Chimaera ** Chimaera monstrosa Rabbitfish Linnaeus, 1758 ** Chimaera obscura Shortspine Chimaera ** Chimaera owstoni Owston's Chimaera Tanaka, 1905 ** Chimaera panthera Leopard Chimaera Didier, 1998 ** Chimaera pseudomonstrosa ** Silver chimaera, Chimaera phantasma Jordan & Snyder, 1900 ** Chimaera sp. G Cape Chimaera , Hydrolagus affinis]] * Genus Hydrolagus ** Smalleyed rabbitfish, Hydrolagus affinis (de Brito Capello, 1868) ** African chimaera, Hydrolagus africanus (Gilchrist, 1922) ** Hydrolagus alberti Bigelow & Schroeder, 1951 ** Hydrolagus alphus Quaranta et al., 2006. ** Hydrolagus barbouri (Garman, 1908) ** Pale ghost shark, Hydrolagus bemisi Didier, 2002 ** Spotted ratfish, Hydrolagus colliei (Lay & Bennett, 1839) ** Philippine chimaera, Hydrolagus deani (Smith & Radcliffe, 1912) ** Hydrolagus eidolon (Jordan & Hubbs, 1925) ** Hydrolagus homonycteris Black Ghost Shark ** Blackfin ghostshark, Hydrolagus lemures (Whitley, 1939) ** Hydrolagus macrophthalmus de Buen, 1959 ** Hydrolagus marmoratus Marbled Ghost Shark ** Hydrolagus matallanasi Sotto & Vooren, 2004 ** Hydrolagus mccoskeri ** Hydrolagus media (Garman, 1911). ** Large-eyed rabbitfish, Hydrolagus mirabilis (Collett, 1904) ** Spookfish, Hydrolagus mitsukurii (Jordan & Snyder, 1904). ** Dark ghost shark, Hydrolagus novaezealandiae (Fowler, 1911) ** Hydrolagus ogilbyi (Waite, 1898) ** Hydrolagus pallidus Hardy & Stehmann, 1990 ** Purple chimaera, Hydrolagus purpurescens (Gilbert, 1905) ** Pointy-nosed blue chimaera, Hydrolagus trolli Didier & Séret, 2002 ** Hydrolagus waitei Fowler, 1908 ** Hydrolagus sp. D/G Giant Black Chimaera ** Hydrolagus sp. F Peruvian Ratfish Family Rhinochimaeridae * Genus Harriotta ** Smallspine spookfish, Harriotta haeckeli Karrer, 1972 ** Narrownose chimaera, Harriotta raleighana Goode & Bean, 1895. , Harriotta raleighana]] * Genus Neoharriotta ** Neoharriotta carri Bullis & Carpenter, 1966 ** Sicklefin chimaera, Neoharriotta pinnata (Schnakenbeck, 1931) ** Neoharriotta pumila Didier & Stehmann, 1996 * Genus Rhinochimaera ** Rhinochimaera africana Compagno, Stehmann & Ebert, 1990 ** Spearnose chimaera, Rhinochimaera atlantica Holt & Byrne, 1909 ** Pacific spookfish, Rhinochimaera pacifica (Mitsukuri, 1895) See also * List of prehistoric cartilaginous fish References * Category:Chimaeriformes Category:Cartilaginous fishes bs:Himere ca:Quimeres de:Seekatzen es:Chimaeriformes fr:Holocephali it:Holocephali mk:Химера nl:Zeekatten (vissen) no:Helhodefisker oc:Holocephali pl:Chimerokształtne pt:Chimaeriformes ru:Химерообразные sr:Химере fi:Koppapäiset zh:银鲛目